Local trooper honored by two districts for his work

Now the New Concord native is in the running for the state-wide award

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Jonah C. Carson was named the Ohio State Highway Patrol Trooper of the Year for the Patrol’s Cambridge District, which puts him in the running for the state-wide trooper of the year award.(Photo: Chris Crook/Times Recorder)Buy Photo

ZANESVILLE - Leadership, attitude and professionalism are just a few of the qualities considered when naming a trooper of the year.

Because of his positive representation of the Ohio Highway Patrol, Trooper Jonah C. Carson of Zanesville has twice this year been honored with the title.

Carson previously received Post Trooper of the Year honors for his work at the New Philadelphia Post, and now he's also been recognized as the Cambridge District Trooper of the Year.

Carson graduated from John Glenn High School in 2011. He then attended Muskingum University, where he received a bachelor's degree in criminal justice.

Upon completion of the highway patrol academy, Carson began his career with the highway patrol in 2016, at the New Philladelphia post.

In October, Carson transferred to the Zanesville post where he would be closer to home.

Troopers work in harsh, vast and unforgiving conditions and they must be able to thrive despite it.

"I think we are all out there trying to do the best we can to keep roadways safer and keep people accountable," Carson said.

Distracted driving is one of the most frequent offenses that he encounters.

Whether it be people driving under the influence of drugs and alcohol, using an electronic device or simply not paying attention to the road, distracted driving is dangerous - often deadly - according to Carson.

"I've pulled along side of people who had a device mounted to the dash and their watching Netflix while driving down the road," Carson said.

But that's not the worst thing troopers face.

"Not knowing what you are going to pull up on when you are dispatched to a crash scene isn't always a good feeling," Carson said. "And, it's always horrible to have to make contact with family after there's been a death."

There are positive things about being a trooper, too.

"People are usually having a bad day when they encounter a trooper," Carson said. "I try to make things better.

"Instead of making their day worse, I try to be a little bit more light-hearted," Carson said. "I like to educate them on what they've done wrong and what they can do to change. I also try to change their attitude towards law enforcement. We are human too."

Carson said he thinks people often forget that law enforcement has a job to do and at the end of the day, they all go home to their families just like everyone else.

In his case, a wife, son and a daughter on the way.

Lt. Matt Boyd said Carson is a tremendous asset to the Zanesville post, particularly after losing several troopers to retirement or transfer recently.

"We have 13 troopers as of Oct. 1, but one of them is currently on loan to the Cambridge post who are short-staffed," Boyd said. "We have a tremendous group of people right now, just a really good group of troopers."

Last week Carson interviewed with Ohio Highway Patrol's senior staff in Columbus along with eight other troopers who are in contention to be named state trooper of the year. The winner will be announced at an awards banquet after the first of the year.